Mayhem are probably the most famous (or infamous) Black Metal band ever. They are well known for the suicide of their secondvocalist, who's stage namewas, ironically, Dead, the murder of theirfounding member and guitarist Euronymous, by the hands ofBurzum mastermind Varg Vikernes(another irony because he played bass on Mayhem's debut album), and their history of violentstage performance (noted at one of their earlier concertswhere Dead performed self-mutilation and pigs heads were mounted onstakes at the front of the stage). The band would also bury their clothes prior toperformances.
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Mayhem are probably the most famous (or infamous) Black Metal band ever. They are well known for the suicide of their secondvocalist, who's stage namewas, ironically, Dead, the murder of theirfounding member and guitarist Euronymous, by the hands ofBurzum mastermind Varg Vikernes(another irony because he played bass on Mayhem's debut album), and their history of violentstage performance (noted at one of their earlier concertswhere Dead performed self-mutilation and pigs heads were mounted onstakes at the front of the stage). The band would also bury their clothes prior toperformances.

Euronymous was the owner of a record shop by the name of Helvete (the Norwegian word for Hell)and held meetings with otherBlack Metal band members in the store's basement. They referred tothemselves as The Black Metal Circle or The Black MetalMafia. Euronymous was also the creatorof the True Norwegian Black Metal scene which was comprised of Burzum, Emperor,Darkthrone anda few other bands within the scene.

Their first album, De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, released in 1993, is legendary and is seen as ahallmark of the Black Metal scene.